Chapter 44: FORTY FOUR

RAFFAELE

Even before I opened my eyes, I knew the sun has been up.

The last time I slept in the bed with Celestia, it was probably one of the most peaceful nights of my life. And right now, waking up with our entangled arms and legs, it felt fucking ecstatic.

With utmost cautioned, I disentangled myself from her sleeping form and traced the wayward tresses framing her face. Celestia looked like the epitome of a well-loved woman with her glowing skin and serene countenance.

I didn’t remember the last night I had shared a bed with a woman after sex, and even when I had provided the aftercare, I managed to slip out in the middle of the night. But with Celestia, things were different.

There were some unbelievable changes that took place ever since she stepped into my life, but everything was altered last night.

She and I.

How, I wasn’t sure. But those intrinsic details led to something fundamental. That I would never be able to let her go completely.

I tried to evaluate my feelings in a wild, wishful moment but couldn’t put a label on.

Love? I doubted if a heartless man like me was capable of that.

Affection? Maybe.

Carefully peeling the cover, I abandoned the bed and slipped into the crumpled clothes discarded on the floor from last night. Celestia was fast asleep, so I leaned down and placed a chaste kiss over her temple and walked out of the door.

Once I left Celestia in her room, I realized that I was running behind schedule for the day. The morning already rolled into ten o’clock by the time I hurried into the bathroom. I freshened, showered and clothed in record time and marched downstairs.

At the foot of the stairs, Cesar was already waiting for me. “Sir, I was waiting for you,” he said, reaching out into his pocket.

“Do I need to be somewhere now, Cesar?”

“No, sir.” It was then he handed me the phone I must have forgotten last night. “It was in the office building. The guard gave me today morning.”

“Thank you.” I pocketed it and approached the dining room.

“Also, your brother is waiting for you.”

That stopped me dead in my tracks. I turned to look at Cesar, who clearly did a great job of masking his expressions, but something told me that things were fishy.

I nodded briskly. “I will take it up with him.”

With that, I advanced towards the breakfast table. A servant quickly came forward, pulling out the chair at the table’s head as I took my place. Amadeo was sitting to my right, and even though he definitely sensed my presence, he didn’t bother looking up from the paper he held in front of his face.

Either he was royally pissed, or we were in deep shit.

“Good morning,” I said, clearing my throat and arranged the napkin over my lap.

“Morning,” he replied, rather tersely and with his nose buried into the paper. Had it been anyone else, replying to me without even meeting the eyes, the person would have paid dearly. But only Amadeo could do that and get away with it.

“I have never seen you sweating with documents on the breakfast table,” I commented as one of the servants placed a plate full of toast, bacon and eggs. The aroma was enough to make my stomach growl, and it reminded me how I completely forgot dinner last time.

“And I have never seen you late for breakfast either,” Amadeo quipped.

Boy, he was pissed at me and how.

“I overslept,” I supplied with a shrug and picked up one of the stacks of papers on the table. I read through the lines and numbers, and it hardly made sense.

“These are the records of a company -Amber packaging,” I mumbled, flipping the pages. “Why are you going through this?” I asked, placing them down. The last I remembered we didn’t with a packing company.

Amadeo finally placed the paper down but avoided my gaze as reached for the plate of beans. “Amber packaging was responsible for the expensive art on the container last week that got hit,” he stated.

I nodded, slowly piecing things and drawled, “Which is why we go after Liberty Insurance.”

“Theoretically, yes,” he acquiesced. “But we need to know that the records of Amber packaging are airtight so that when the lawyer from the other side tries and shores up any information, there’s no loophole in it.”

I took another bite of the bacon and savored in the taste. “Isn’t that why we pay our lawyers?”

“I am good with numbers. I can do it five times faster than fancy suits with Ivy League law degree unless you have a problem.”

Now, I was starting to piss off. Placing the fork down, I leaned back into the chair and cross my arms over my chest. “Amadeo, I don’t prefer riddles, least of all on a Wednesday morning. If you want to say something, spit it out.”

He finally pushed aside his plate and stacks of paper and looked up for the first time ever since I joined him on the breakfast table. “I can do that,” he nodded. “How about you start doing things a little more professionally for a Wednesday morning?”

“What did I say about riddles?” I snarled low at him.

My brother gave me a hardened look of his resolve and turned to the servant standing at the end of the table. I jerked his head towards the door, ordering, “Leave us.”

On cue, the three servers scurried out like they were glad to be left out of the conversation. It was when we were the only ones in the room that his complete attention fell on me.

“You are not going to like very much what I want to say.” The displeasure on his face matched mine. “But since beating around the bush is on your agenda today, let me spell it out, Raffaele. Let go of Celestia.”

The force on his words hit me like a ship against an iceberg.

Leaning forward, I gripped the edge of the table, needing to control the fierce rage. “What did you just say to me?”

“You heard me just fine,” he snapped, undaunted. “This madness has gone out of limits, and I am truly regretting that I had contributed to it.” He shook his head as his nose flared. “But that does not mean I am along for the ride. Let’s find a head-hunter and get Kyla Donovan here to squeeze out the money she owes us.”

The chance for head hunters and the rest of the options were long gone when Celestia came into the picture. And all things considered, I was sure as hell not letting this go when everything was set in motion.

What I didn’t understand were my brother’s madness and resentment.

“And what if she doesn’t cave?” I argued. I had a strong feeling that shady woman like Kyla Donovan doesn’t cave until the back was against a steel wall. “Do you really think that a con woman who doesn’t care about her daughter over her safety would gladly pay us fifteen million she owes?”

“And you care about her daughter more than her mother does.” He scoffed. “That’s rich.”

I banged a fist on the table, rattling the fine china. “I had enough of this conversation, Amadeo. Do what you want and let me do what I think is best for our interests.”

I threw the napkin over the table and was about to get up when Amadeo hissed out. “Fucking Celestia is not any of our interests!”

There was a deafening silence that descended over us, and for a long stretch, we didn’t speak.

I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to calm the heavy breaths. “None of your business.”

Amadeo sighed heavily, raking a frustrated hand through his well-combed hair. “I was looking for you last night, but you were nowhere to be found.” His tone was surprisingly gentle and calm. “Your phone was going to voicemail, and I had an inkling that you might be with Celestia. So I went to her room to look for you. What didn’t expect was to hear sounds that closely resemble fucking and moaning.”

My eyes flew to his, determined than ever. “Stay out of it, Amadeo. I mean it.”

He weighed in the words as a small smirk lifted at the corner of his lips. “I don’t know if it’s warning or threat or both, and I honestly don’t care. I am your brother, and therefore, I am going to speak my mind whether you like it or not. You are being an asshole. She is a nice girl, despite her circumstances, and you have no right to ruin her like this.”

“Are you done?” I asked.

“Not until you are done with her.”

Brother or not, I had enough of him. “Since you spoke your mind, it’s only fair I do mine. Back the fuck off, Amadeo.”

The legs of the chair screeched as I roughly pushed back and rose. But the sound of door wrenching open cut the conversation short. When we looked the way, Cesar marched in.

I have never seen the man breaking protocol or intruding our privacy when we have purposefully sent away others, but something was wrong.

I knew it—I could feel it in my bones.

Cesar’s glanced between us, before zeroing on me. “Sir, I am sorry to interrupt, but we have a visitor for you both.”

Amadeo and I exchanged a puzzled look.

“Who is it?” I asked.

“Kyla Donovan.”

What do you think will happen next? BTW, a series of turns and twists are on your way! Enjoy!